Ladan Replaces Barkindo as NNPC Boss

Alhaji Shehu Ladan, a former group executive director at the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, has been appointed the Group Managing Director of the NNPC, replacing Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo.

Acting President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday sacked Barkindo, who has been at the helm for just over a year.

Ladan retired exactly a year ago as Group Executive Director, Commercial and Investment, of the NNPC.

A statement yesterday in Abuja by Jonathan’s spokesman Ima Niboro said: “The Acting President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, has appointed Alhaji Shehu Ladan as the new Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). He replaces Alhaji Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo.” Jonathan thanked Barkindo for his stewardship and wished him well in his future endeavours.

The announcement of the sack came few hours after Barkindo had left the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where he attended the inauguration of the Federal Executive Council yesterday.

Ladan, who hails from Kaduna State, is a lawyer, philanthropist and oil and gas management strategist.

He was Deputy Managing Director of Nigeria LNG, and Executive Director of National Engineering and Technical Company Limited (NETCO) as well as Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), both subsidiaries of NNPC.

He had his early education at N.A. Primary School Tudun Wada before proceeding to Sheikh Sabah College (now Sardauna Memorial College) in Kaduna for senior secondary school certificate.

He has a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in law at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. He is also an alumnus of the Harvard Business School and the University of Dundee.

Ladan served as staff solicitor of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, and later Company Secretary/Legal Adviser of the Kaduna State Rural Electrification Board (REB) and Assistant Director, Federal Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, Jos.

He was appointed Kaduna state commissioner of education in 1987. In 1989, he became the state’s attorney general and commissioner of justice.

Ladan moved to the oil and gas industry in 1990. He held various positions at the NNPC, rising to be the Group General Manager of Human Resources in 2004. In 2006, he was appointed the deputy Managing Director/CEO of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Ltd, a joint venture company that has NNPC, Shell, Total and Agip as shareholders. In October 2007, he was appointed Group Executive Director Commercial and Investment of NNPC.

He holds the traditional title of Cigarin (The Conqueror of) Zazzau.